The Thrill of the Trail – Mt. Pinatubo Sapang Uwak – Delta V
Our very challenging hike of Mt. Pinatubo via Delta V and Sapang Uwak Trail was a once in an experience that we will never forget!
Mt. Pinatubo (1760+MASL)
Sapang Uwak – Delta V Extended Dayhike
Major Jump-off Point: Brgy. Pidpid, Porac, Pampanga
Coordinates: 15°8’35″N, 120°20’54″E, 1468MASL
Days Required/Hours to Crater: 1-2days, 9-10hrs
Specs: Major Climb, 8/9, Trail Class 1-3
(www.pinoymountaineer.com)
I have always been fascinated with the stories and documentaries of the historic eruption of the Pinatubo Volcano. I am going to visit whatever is left of this volcano and witness this beautiful disaster for my own eyes to see. And that day came eventually.
The Disaster of 1991
Mount Pinatubo is part of a chain of composite volcanoes along the Luzon arc on the west coast of the island (area map). The arc of volcanoes is due to the subduction of the Manila trench to the west. The volcano experienced major eruptions approximately 500, 3000, and 5500 years ago.(Rosenberg, 2017).
It was home to thousands of indigenous tribes of Aetas who sought refuge in its tropical forests. They made a living with its rich natural resources during the Spanish conquest.
It laid dormant for over half a century, but on that fateful day of June 15, 1991, Mt. Pinatubo erupted in its mightiest and most frightening form yet. Spewing out cubic kilometers of ashes and pyroclastic materials that ravaged the surrounding communities and municipalities in the three provinces.
Successful predictions by the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS) and the United States Geologic Survey (USGS) at the onset of this cataclysmic eruption lessened the number of fatalities, by evacuating tens of thousands of people, saving lives that may have been gone to the ashes.
But the aftermath still left 847 dead, hundreds missing, thousands displaced by the lahar flow. It costed millions of pesos of damage to infrastructures and means of livelihood, and billions of pesos for the recovery period. What made this eruption more devastating is the arrival of typhoon Diding several days after.
The typhoon unleashed floods with lethal mixes of ash, tephra, streams of pyroclastic materials and rocks that remobilized the lahar deposits to the mourning communities, inflicting again damage to what’s left in the vast plains of this three provinces.
This Plinian/ Ultraplinian eruption produced the second largest terrestrial eruption of the 20th century. It ejected vast quantities of materials into the stratosphere including millions of tonnes of Sulfur Dioxide that created an acid haze, subsequent effects of it were the global cooling, reducing worldwide temperature by 0.9°Fahrenheit.
The Long Trek to Mt. Mcdonald
I signed up for the Mt. Pinatubo Sapang Uwak to Delta-V day hike organized by Sir Jherry Guiao. This climb was the first of its kind as no group has ever attempted a day hike that traverses the volcano from the traditional Delta-V to Sapang Uwak hike.
From Manila, it took us almost two hours before we reached the Porac Exit of the Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway (SCTEX). We happened to pass by two military check points asking for our permit and identification cards before we finally reached the community of Sapang Uwak.
At the end of the once again paved road, our service came to a halt, with no further ado, we started the very early morning hike at two in the morning.
The trail is wide open on a series of uphills and downhills, Fog and pitch black darkness enveloped the whole team with only our headlamps and flashlights as source of light. As the sun slowly rose, so does the surroundings came into life. The once grass covered trail with nothing to see turned into slopes and valleys teeming with life.
Sir Jherry started to point out several other mountains and peaks that has not been fully explored by the city people. Some of the mountains he mentioned was the Mt. Babatibat, Mt. Siang-Kabayo, Mt. Bale-Hangin and the formidable looking Mt. Negron. Those mountains are said to be the hunting grounds for wild boars and where rare and endemic flora and fauna still thrives due to its obscurity.
An hour and a half passed, through meandering and really long ridge walks, we have finally arrived at Mt. Mcdonald by 7:30 in the morning. We rested for a while after more than five hours of hiking.
From afar, the jagged peaks of the Pinatubo Volcano intimidated us a lot that made the hike more exciting than ever.
The Rebirth of Pinatubo
After that much needed rest, we then continued down Mt. Mcdonald to reach the much awaited crater rim. But this is where the challenge really started.
The way down was a lot steeper than what I expected. An almost 90 degree wall welcomed us with the trail that is just as wide as a ruler, one wrong step, and voila.
After that steep descent, boulders and rocks welcomed us. We eventually covered the gap that separates Mt. Pinatubo from Mt. Mcdonald. From the foot of the volcano, the crater rim is just a stone throw away.
But the ascent trail proved to be more tricky since there are hardly any trails leading to the crater summit due to the alternating patches of boulders and grasses. It was really hard to tell which of the trail has holes and which one is safe to put your weight upon.
After two hours and a half of descent then ascent, the final leg proved to be more breath taking than ever. The surrounding valleys and mountains inside the Cabusilan Range was like taken straight out from Michael Crichton’s island, the Isla Nublar.
Just a few more steps, I felt an even more strong surge of wind signalling that we are inching closer to the crater.
A few moments passed, I finally set my eyes upon the whole crater of Mt. Pinatubo. I was simply struck in awe.
After what seemed like to be a split second eternity, everything before my own eyes is still hard to digest. All that hours of endless walk paid off, big time, even more than that. This, I should admit, is one of the most beautiful sights that I have seen to date.
The jagged peaks that seemed to be the crowning glory of this volcanic edifice surrounded the almost triangular Pinatubo lake. The lake spans 2.7km wide, and is painted in hues of emerald. The crater rim is heavily eroded, and from this viewpoint, one should exercise caution as the edges seems to be really fragile.
The gently sloping apron coated in lahar and hardened lava, rising just 200 meters above the surrounding ancient volcanic relics hides the volcano from the lowlands.
The Thrill of the Delta V
The journey is still halfway from over so we have to push through with the Delta-V. By 12noon, we descended down to a new trail since the traditonal trail still needs some bush whacking after the typhoon months.
It took us more than an hour to finish the Patal Mai part of the descent. This is mostly composed of cramped up mountain walls on both sides and is covered in moss and vegetation.
We reached the infamous Delta-V river after several minutes moreand by 2:00pm, we reached the Pinatubo Twin Falls. The twin cascade is tucked inside the mountain where cool water flows down into a gentle stream. We took a quick dip just to relax our sore and tired muscles.
Then just a little more trek down, is where the Apu Malyari Falls is located. It is a single flowing waterfall plunging down to an estimated 30 meter drop.
It was a series of river crossings, some of which involves wading over waist high river water. The night eventually caught up on us, and the trek even became more dangerous with the swelling of the river as the rain fell by dusk.
The long corridor-like walk brought my spirits down as my food provisions are thinning down to almost zero. Our flashlights and batteries are about to die anytime soon. My companion Ms. Anna was nursing a sprained ankle, and not much of the medicine she took had any effect and eventually slowed her down as the pain became increasingly unbearable.
We reached Bahay na Bato by 7:30pm, 17 hours and counting for the day hike. We then again waded into waist deep river water in pitch black darkness. Then that is where the large boulder with raging river waters as deep as several meters flowed into each side.
Only way to get down is through ropes brought by Sir Jherry. One wrong move again and two raging rivers with mud waters on each sides awaits. (RIP to the headlamps swallowed by the river during that night)
We did not managed to reach the end of the trail nor can our lead locate the shortcut to the Aeta Community where we can spend the night to rest. Everybody was downright exhausted, that we decided to go back to the highest lahar riverbank that we can find on our way to set up our emergency camp by 10:15pm.
We were traversing the Delta-V trail for several hours now that hope ran out and only daylight can solve our problems.
Emergency Camp
Morning came, the vast stone walled corridor, and the gleaming river bank got illuminated again by the morning light. I failed to bring out provisions for e-camps since this is just a dayhike, a thing that I will always avoid on my next hikes.
I slept on a large rock with my poncho as my source of heat against the really cold night.
The short-cut that we can’t find last night was now located, as it was hidden beneath a curtain of vines and plants. Upon reaching the top, it took us about two more hours before we reached the Aeta Community. They received us with warm smiles and some fruits to eat.
Then from the small community we then got back to the Mt. Dorst junction that also happens to be the Sapang Uwak trail. We saw the grand Miyamit Falls from the top of this ridge filled with sunflowers. And again it took us an hour to reach the jump-off point where our van was parked.
This is one of the most hardest extended day hikes that I’ve been into. Sir Jherry, with no sign of exhaustion on his face asked a guy with his motorcycle to buy us something to eat from the community below.
Mt. Arayat loomed faintly from where we were standing. Recounting the experiences from the past day, it was hard and rewarding all the same, the beautiful disaster proved to be an experience of a lifetime. We got down to the Alviera Land by noon time where we had ourselves cleaned, and then had a fun post climb buffet in San Fernando, Pampanga.
And the rest was history.
